Tag Archives: justice

Drivers face court over motorbike crashes

Two drivers who ran a red light and a give way sign, hitting and injuring motorbike riders have appeared in court today (29 January 2020) as the wheels of justice grind slowly on.

Give way crash

Liverpool driver Shaokun Zhu, 30, appeared in Liverpool Local Court today charged with negligence after allegedly driving through a give way sign and hitting a motorcyclist in Sydney’s west on 30 October 2019.

He has now been listed for a hearing on 26 May 2020.

NSW Police will allege he was driving a Volkswagen Passat west along Cabramatta Road West when he went through a give way sign without stopping.

His VW hit a motorbike being ridden by a 28-year-old man who was thrown from the bike.

The rider suffered significant injuries including a fractured shoulder, pelvis and hip, as well as serious cuts and abrasions.

The scene was examined by officers from the Metropolitan Crash Investigation Unit.

Shaokun Zhu was arrested and charged with dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm, negligent driving occasioning grievous bodily harm.

His licence was suspended and he was given conditional bail which has been extended.

Red light crash

In the second incident last September, SUV driver Daniel Marjoribanks was charged after allegedly running a red light and hitting a rider at the intersection of Schofields and Windsor roads, Rouse Hill.

“The driver allegedly turned right against the red arrow and struck a motorcycle which was being ridden north through the intersection,” police will allege.

The motorcyclist, a 63-year-old man, suffered multiple compound fractures to his right leg and fractured ribs.

Marjoribanks was charged with:

  • Dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm;
  • Negligent driving occasioning grievous bodily harm;
  • Fail to stop and assist after vehicle impact causing grievous bodily harm;
  • Fail to stop and assist after impact cause injury;
  • Drive when visiting privileges withdrawn – first offence; and
  • Not give particulars to injured person.

He appeared for the third time in Blacktown Local Court this morning where the matter was again adjourned for mention on February 12.

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com

Cheap justice in rider’s roadworks crash

More than three years after a Darwin rider died in a roadworks crash (photo above), the court has dished out cheap justice for the life of the rider.

Queensland company BMD Constructions had faced fines of up to $1.5m for failing to comply with work health and safety obligations over the death of Darwin musician Peter “Pedro” Bonnell.

Instead, NT Worksafe has accepted an enforceable undertaking from the company to spend just $305,000 in activities to improve motorist as well as worker safety.

However, it seems most of the money will be spent on staff awareness of silicosis and mental health issues, rather than motorist safety.

Only $20,000 will be spent on bringing workers up to the Work Zone Traffic Controller (WZ2) qualification standard.

An undisclosed sum will also be spent on creating an “e-learning training package for general awareness of traffic management for the NT construction industry”.

Cheap justice

It seems like cheap justice for the life of a rider and does little to make other roadworks companies liable for shoddy roadworks and traffic management procedures.

Pedro died on April 20, 2016, when his motorbike crashed into a traffic diversion set up as part of the Tiger Brennan Drive duplication roadworks.

Justice moves slowly in roadworks crash death of Darwin rider and well-known musician Peter “Pedro” Bonnell
Darwin musician Peter “Pedro” Bonnell

NT Worksafe alleged the traffic diversion set-up was not in accordance with an approved traffic control diagram and not compliant with Australian Standards.

They also alleged BMD Constructions used interlocking crash barriers without reflective bollards that were not compliant with Australian Standards, and failed in other safety areas.

NT WorkSafe Acting Executive Director Mel Garde said it was appropriate to accept the enforceable undertaking as the traffic diversion set-up was not the sole contributing factor to the incident.

She says several of the activities in the sanction will up-skill the construction industry on traffic management, creating a safer environment for workers and the wider community.

“Traffic management is an important factor in maintaining a safe workplace,” she says.

“There is an obligation to not only protect workers from the hazards of oncoming traffic, but also to protect road users from potential hazards created by the worksite.

“The driving skill and experience of road users will vary widely so it is critical that traffic management plans and traffic diversions are compliant with Australian Standards, so that all road users can safely navigate them.”

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com

Rear-ended BMW rider seeks justice

A Brisbane rider whose BMW R 1200 R was rear-ended in 2016 is still waiting to find out if the irresponsible driver who hit him has been fined.

Matthew Craig, of Daisy Hill, was leaving the M1 at the Mt Gravatt-Capalaba Rd exit when he stopped at a give way sign in the left-hand slip lane to let a several vehicles pass by.

Seconds later, he was rear-ended by an impatient BMW X3 driver.

Since then, Matthew has not ridden and is still waiting for another bike as his was classified a repairable write off. 

To rub salt into his wounds, police and the courts have refused to provide him or us information about the driver’s punishment.

Matthew Craig's BMW R 1200 R before it was rear-ended
Matthew Craig’s immaculate BMW R 1200 R before it was rear-ended

All he knows is that the woman was charged with driving without due care and attention and the matter was finalised at Holland Park Magistrates Court on January 25, 2017.

Search for justice

Matthew was not forewarned about the court appearance and his efforts over the past two years to find out what happened have failed.

He has been told it is a privacy issue.

However, the matter was heard in an open and public court. It is not his fault he was not present when the matter was heard as he was not warned of the date.

It is good that justice may have been done, but it is important that justice is also seen to be done and that the victims are satisfied with the verdict.

Matthew is now filing a Freedom of Information application.

We will update you if/when he gets a result.

How to avoid rear-ender

Meanwhile, it looks like there is little Matthew could have done to avoid this rear-ender.

The problem is impatience.

It happened to me at a stop sign when a fellow rider rammed me from behind. We were in a queue of riders going around the corner. While looking to the right for oncoming traffic he assumed I had dribbled through the stop sign instead of coming to a full stop.

I have also seen this happen to another rider and a friend in his car. Check out this rear-ended rider’s video.

The first vehicle moves to the front and stops to look for traffic and the next vehicle stops behind them.

On seeing that the road is clear, the second vehicle just proceeds without looking ahead, assuming the vehicle in front has also moved.

In this case, Matthew waited cautiously for the vehicle with the dashcam, even though there was a clear left lane.

Matthew Craig's BMW R 1200 R before it was rear-ended
Impatience leads to impact!

And the driver behind him doesn’t even appear to be ready to stop!

His cautiousness cost him a crash.

To avoid this sort of incident, riders can try several things:

  • Check behind to see if there is a vehicle following;
  • If possible, offset your bike to the following vehicle, either to the extreme left or right of the lane or trickle a little around the corner; and/or
  • Blow your horn or rev your bike to alert the following driver that you are still there.

Click here for more tips on avoiding rear-enders in situations such as lane filtering.

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com

MBW helping riders seeking justice

The three most popular articles this year have been about riders successfully obtaining justice either in beating incorrect fines or, in once case, getting a driver fined for road rage. In all cases we are happy to say that Motorbike Writer has played a role.

Lane filter justice

The most popular article was the end result of last year’s most popular article about a driver who put his arm out the window to stop a Newcastle rider legally filtering through traffic.

We published the original article in November 2017 with this video, but police weren’t interested.

But with pressure from the rider and MBW, police eventually fined the driver in January 2018 under Rule 268 (3): Part of body outside vehicle window/door – $325 fine, 3 demerits.

Without the rider’s helmet camera video, the rider might never have won justice.

It is an important example why some state governments should amend laws to allow cameras on helmets.

Standing on footpegs

Incorrect fine Tim Byrne justice
Tim with footpeg fine

The second most popular article was about South Australian police dropping a rider’s fine for standing on the footpegs. 

Adelaide rider Tim Byrne says he was fined for standing up while riding through some roadworks in January 2018 despite the practice being legalised in South Australia in 2016 and added to the Australian Road Rules this year. 

Click here to read about the new ARRs.

Tim and Motorbike Writer contacted the police pointing out their error, yet they refused to withdraw the fine.

Motorbike Writer then set Tim up with Maurice Blackburn Lawyers who took on the case a pro bono (free) basis as a “matter of principle”.

As a result, a police supervisor decided to drop the fine.

Helmet sticker

Rider challenges helmet sticker fine justice
Ted wins on helmet sticker fine

In the third most popular article, Victorian Police withdrew a fine against a rider for not having an external compliance sticker on his Australian-approved motorcycle helmet.

The fact is, you can remove your helmet sticker. Click here to read our advice to riders.

So we suggested rider Alasdair “Ted” Cameron challenge the $371 fine through Maurice Blackburn Lawyers.

Senior associate Katie Minogue said she was confident her client had a “strong enough case” and was looking forward to their day in court.

However, at the last minute, VicPol have withdrawn the fine.

Once again, this means the issue has not been dealt with in court so no legal precedent has been set.

Motorbike Writer is happy to help you seek justice by promoting your cause. Click here to send us details of your incident.

Most popular

While these were the most popular new articles in 2018, our most popular reads for the year were older advice articles.

Our perennial top read seems to be our tips on washing your motorbike.

Clean wash Ducati GT1000 justice

Second is an article about the correct tyre pressures for your bike, followed by what are the lowest seat heights with a comprehensive list of all motorcycle seat heights.

They are followed by advice on how to avoid a tank slapper, when to replace your helmet and even how and when to do the motorcycle wave!

Top 10 tips for washing your motorcycle

What are correct motorcycle tyre pressures?

What are the lowest motorcycle seat heights?

How to avoid a tank slapper or speed wobble

10 tips for doing the motorcycle wave

When to replace your motorcycle helmet

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com